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What do you do when someone inside your company absolutely, positively screws up? That was the question facing $15 billion shipping giant Federal Express last week as it attempted to untangle rumors about an agency review for an assignment from its freight marketing division. First, marketing executives dodged the issue and referred questions to a public relations staffer who denied any talks. Another pr executive then confirmed a letter had been sent to outside agencies. There was no "formal" search, however. Finally, after much investigation, a representative for the Memphis, Tenn.-based company said the whole thing had been, well, a mistake. The letter had been "sent out in error" to outside shops by a junior-level executive, he said. FedEx shop BBDO New York was also caught in the furor, fielding calls about a nonexistent review. Regarding the letters, a BBDO representative said, "That's one package that should have been returned to sender." --Michael McCarthy and Sloane Lucas

What do you do when someone inside your company absolutely, positively screws up? That was the question facing $15 billion shipping giant Federal Express last week as it attempted to untangle rumors about an agency review for an assignment from its freight marketing division. First, marketing executives dodged the issue and referred questions to a public relations staffer who denied any talks. Another pr executive then confirmed a letter had been sent to outside agencies. There was no "formal" search, however. Finally, after much investigation, a representative for the Memphis, Tenn.-based company said the whole thing had been, well, a mistake. The letter had been "sent out in error" to outside shops by a junior-level executive, he said. FedEx shop BBDO New York was also caught in the furor, fielding calls about a nonexistent review. Regarding the letters, a BBDO representative said, "That's one package that should have been returned to sender." --Michael McCarthy and Sloane Lucas